[twitter]The boys absolutely LOVED last year’s Calgary Hitmen Teddy Bear Toss game and it has now instantly become a family tradition.

We’ve had the same seats two years in a row, low in the upper deck right behind the goalie. We buy some stuffies at the rink and then, along with more than 17 000 other people in the Scotiabank Saddledome, sit on the edge of our chairs waiting for the first goal to be scored so we can toss our 25, 921 bears on the ice.

The teddy bears create a soft pillow for everyone! pic.twitter.com/3JJOONlFai

— Calgary Hitmen (@WHLHitmen) December 2, 2013

The atmosphere is like an overtime playoff game. Every single chance is met with OOOOOOhhhhsss from the crowd.

Many teams in the Canadian Hockey League have a Teddy Bear Toss game in early December. The idea is to collect thousands of bears to be distributed to kids in need. They could be something to hold on to for kids in the hospital, or a friend to cuddle at an emergency site (car crash, house fire). It’s a great event that packs the house each year.

And lest you think 26 000 teddy bears is over the top, this year the demand for stuffed toys from local agencies, including the Salvation Army and Calgary Food Bank, has increased to over 28,000 teddy bears as the June flooding continues to impact a large number of children and families in southern Alberta.

So here’s how it looked this year at the 2013 Calgary Hitmen Teddy Bear Toss game versus the Medicine Hat Tigers when Pavel Padakin scored the teddy bear goal for the second year in a row and 25, 921 teddy bears started pouring over the boards.